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 Bucks County
Genealogical Society
December 2014 Newsletter
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PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE
Greetings to all BCGS Members and Friends,
Merry Christmas! Happy Holidays! And a big thank you to all of our wonderful members for another terrific year for the new Bucks County Genealogical Society.
A quick "Year in Review": our membership has grown from about 170 at the end of 2013, to 270 at the end of 2014; we sent our newsletter to 350 people last December, while this year we are sending it to 625; we launched our free, online database, which is approaching a quarter million Bucks County genealogical records; we have photographed almost all of the cemeteries in Bucks County, and completed assessments on 100 of them; we hit a record high meeting attendance of 95 people this year; and finally, we attained 501c3 non-profit status. Impressive? It's nothing short of incredible!!
On a personal note, I'm going to use the quiet week after Christmas to begin the project of organizing my family's photographs. I have the archival boxes ready, and I'm especially excited to get the photos out of those awful sticky old photo albums. I'll keep you updated on how that goes!
Wishing you all the happiest of holidays,
filled with laughter and peace, and may
 your New Year bring many new discoveriesdiscoveries about your ancestors.
Warm Regards,
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SATURDAY, JANUARY 3, 2015
10:00 AM-12:00 Noon
at the David Library of the American Revolution
1201 River Road, Washington Crossing, PA
(Park behind the building and use the Conference Center entrance.)____________________________
Researching Your English Family
Presented by Frank Southcott
Through the use, explanation and analysis of available English census records, extant church records, civil registration and manorial records, the techniques of finding and developing the English family will be explained using actual research, histories, and circumstances.
About the speaker: 
Frank Southcott has been a family history researcher for over twenty-five years and practicing professionally since 2005. He has focused his professional research on historic Chester County, Pennsylvania and the Philadelphia area. His pursuit of family has led to extensive travel and research in the British Isles and maritime Canada.
A graduate of the University of Maryland with a BS in Business, Frank also holds an MBA and is a graduate of the Boston University Certificate in Genealogical Research program. He is currently the President, Greater Philadelphia Area Chapter, Association of Professional Genealogists, and Secretary of the International Society of British Genealogy and Family History. He has attended numerous genealogical institutes and conventions over the past years and currently resides in Downingtown, Pennsylvania.
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The meeting is open to the public. Cost for members is $5 and for non-members it is $10.
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BCGS NEEDS YOU!
The 9th Annual Bucks County Ancestry Fair will be held on September 19, 2015, and we need volunteers to serve on regular planning meetings for this event.
We need people to help with contacting vendors, selecting and contacting speakers, helping with publicity, etc. A committee is currently searching for a facility for this event.
With the growth of our Society, the BCGS board members are very busy and would appreciate your help with this project. Please sign up by contacting Jeff Sipler at [email protected]
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Using WorldCat to Find Genealogy Books
Dick Eastman's Online Genealogy Newsletter has a great article about about using WorldCat. Here is a link to the article:
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YES, WE STILL NEED HELP WITH REFRESHMENTS!
Can you help one or two months a year?
Instead of making the coffee before the meeting, we are going to purchase coffee boxes at Dunkin' Donuts or Starbucks. The boxes come with all accoutrements and should make for an easy volunteer job. We are asking for volunteers to provide snacks, but all other supplies costs will continue to be paid by BCGS.
To volunteer or for more information,
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THE DATABASE IS ALWAYS GROWING!
 The database changes almost daily. Have you seen the recent additions? There are 11,000 more searchable names than there were last month.
These records were just added this week: Baptisms, marriages, burials and church membership records from St. Luke's Reformed Church, Nockamixon, 1846-1944; pastoral record of Rev. Charles Freeman, including baptisms, marriages burials, and church admission records; marriage and death notice extracts from the Springtown Weekly Times.
As of December 18, 2014 the BCGS database contains: 22,003 birth and baptism records; 14,954 marriage records; 77,680 death and burial records; 13,689 other miscellaneous records; and 241,002 total searchable names.
Your feedback is welcome! Please email Nancy Heath at [email protected] with your comments.
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Big news for Pennsylvania coal miners'
daughters, sons, and genealogists!
Ancestry.com has a collection containing information about employees of The Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company from 1900 to 1960. Images are on preprinted forms, the majority of which are typed and therefore easily transcribed. The handful of records that have been handwritten appear in most cases to be easily deciphered. This collection contains a wealth of information for the genealogist with fields that establish an individuals birth, residence, number and age of children, employment history and more.
For more information, click here to go to the Ancestry.com World Archives Project page.
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BEGINNERS CORNER
Do you have English relatives who all seem to have the same name? A member received a brief explanation of the naming tradition in the 18th & 19th centuries in a recent email:
The first son was named after the father's father.
The second son after the mother's father.
The third son after the father.
The fourth son after the father's eldest brother.
The first daughter after the mother's mother.
The second daughter after the father's mother.
The third daughter after the mother.
The fourth daughter after the mother's eldest sister.
Come out to our meeting on Saturday, January 3, and get more information on researching your English ancestors from speaker Frank Southcott.
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TECH TIP...
Love apps for your android? Take a look at Family Bee. It is a full-featured robust family tree browser. It allows you to view information about families and individuals stored in GEDCOM genealogy files. BCGS member Wayne Campbell uses this and is pleased with it.
If you are looking for a mapping app, check out this article on the ten best mapping apps for your android: techradar.com
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COMPREHENSIVE EVENTS CALENDAR
 Click the link for a listing of upcoming genealogy events for our organization and others in our area:
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Have you looked at our Facebook page?
Cathy Ivins, BCGS Director of Publicity, posts great genealogy information almost every day. Click here and take a look...
www.facebook.com/bucksgen
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Do you have a query about a Bucks County ancestor, and don't know where to send it?
If you would like an answer from our Query Coordinator, Tom Myers, please send your query to Tom at [email protected]
If you would like the query published in a BCGS newsletter, please send your query (or comment) to VP Membership, Pat Gessner, at [email protected]
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Membership Fees for One Year Membership
Individual: $20 Dual/Household: $35 Organization: $75
Our membership fees help to pay for speakers, facility rental, website costs, insurance and more. Membership in BCGS is on a rolling basis and lasts one year from the month you join. Won't you join and help us continue to grow?
Member Benefits - with more to come: - Discount on Society educational programs and events.
- Members can have their surnames posted on our website with a link to the member's email address.
- Members-Only section of the BCGS website. Participate in discussion forums, share files, photos, and information with other members; see members' favorite genealogical websites and contribute your own.
- Meeting handouts are available to members unable to attend the Society's regular monthly meetings.
- GenealogyBank: 20% ($14) discount - members may subscribe for $55.95 per year.
- Fold3: 37% ($30) discount - members may subscribe for $49.95 per year.
- Saving Memories Forever: 12% discount - members may receive a one-year premium subscription for $35.00.
- Dell purchase program: provides discounts on products sold through the Dell website to FGS member societies' members, their families, and their friends. BCGS is a member of FGS (Federation of Genealogical Societies) and the discounts are available to our members.
- Findmypast: $20 discount on annual membership.
Join or renew by mail using our membership application/renewal form, on line on the Society's website via PayPal or by paying with cash or check at our next meeting. And, we now have the ability to accept credit card payments at our monthly meetings! If you have questions and to get access to the above discounts,
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More information about us:
Members only...join our Members-Only section of our website. Registration information available at: Login - Bucks County Genealogical Society
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BCGS 2015 BOARD MEMBERS
President Christine Roberts
Vice President - Membership Pat Gessner
Vice President - Programs & Education Jeff Sipler
Vice President - Projects & Research Joann Cosgrove
Secretary Mary Butash
Treasurer Marguerite Mogila
Director - Public Relations Cathy Ivins
Director - Website Nancy Heath
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